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Disneynature’s Bears in Theaters April 18, 2014

April 5, 2013 By 5 Comments

In an epic story of breathtaking scale, Disneynature’s new True Life Adventure “Bears” showcases a year in the life of two mother bears as they impart life lessons to their impressionable young cubs. Set against a majestic Alaskan backdrop teeming with life, their journey begins as winter comes to an end and the bears emerge from hibernation to face the bitter cold. The world outside is exciting—but risky—as the cubs’ playful descent down the mountain carries with it a looming threat of avalanches. As the season changes from spring to summer, the brown bear families must work together to find food—ultimately feasting at a plentiful salmon run—while staying safe from predators, including an ever-present wolf pack. “Bears” captures the fast-moving action and suspense of life in one of the planet’s last great wildernesses—where mothers definitely know best and their cubs’ survival hinges on family togetherness.

 

Directed by Alastair Fothergill (“Earth,” “African Cats” and “Chimpanzee”) and Keith Scholey (“African Cats”), “Bears” is in theaters April 18, 2014, to celebrate Earth Day.

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Fun Disneynature Facts:

· Bears” is the fifth release for Disneynature, the first new Disney-branded film label from The Walt Disney Studios in more than 60 years.  The label was launched in April 2008 to bring the world’s top nature filmmakers together to capture a variety of wildlife subjects and stories.

· The first four releases under the Disneynature label—“Earth,” “Oceans,” “African Cats” and “Chimpanzee”—are among the top five highest grossing feature-length nature films of all time. 

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· Walt Disney was a pioneer in wildlife documentary filmmaking, producing 13 True Life Adventure motion pictures between 1948 and 1960, including “Seal Island” (1948), “Beaver Valley” (1950), “The Living Desert” (1953) and “Jungle Cat” (1958).  The films earned eight Academy Awards®. 

 

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Disneynature’s BEARS releases in theaters on April 18, 2014!



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The College Everyone Wants to Go To and I Got In: Monsters University #MonstersUEvent

March 24, 2013 By 5 Comments

I have nightmares about having never finished college and that I need to go back to college. In most of my dreams I wake up as soon as I realize I have to go back to college, once I even went back to college which was really weird because my husband continued to work at Microsoft while I went back to school. A week ago I was looking through my e-mail and my dream came true. I was Told I have to go back to school. I have to go to Monsters University and I’m actually quite excited to go!

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I’m going to San Francisco to the Pixar campus where I will be enrolled as a college freshman at Monsters University. There I’m going to learn all about the new movie Monsters University, it’s where all the learning happens, where you learn the real scare! I’ve been looking at my class options and know the only way for me is the scary way. The School of Scaring :

MU is a place for self-discovery, curiosity, and scholarship. With unmatched class offerings, a multitude of majors, and a supportive and friendly campus environment, Monsters University is worthy of your attention.
Each year, over 26,000 high school and transfer monsters apply to MU, but only a fraction get admitted. Our methods are strenuous, but our tradition is truly great.
With the top scaring program in the country, along with four other academically rigorous schools (including notable programs in scream energy, door technology, and business), MU’s academics are second-to-none.

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But who really goes to college to learn, it’s all about the parties and these monsters know how to party!!!

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I wonder how much trouble I’ll get into going back to college. Last time I went I made the best friends and had a great time. I even pledged to a sorority, but that ended up taking so much of my time that I just couldn’t hang. The night they kidnapped me I was so angry, I had a program due the next day and let me just say sororities don’t take no for an answer, well, I hope you’ll follow along next month when I’m kidnapped again as I attend Monsters University.

 

Monsters University is in theaters June 21st.



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Coming To Theaters This July from DreamWorks Animation – Turbo!

March 13, 2013 By 4 Comments

Coming This July from DreamWorks Animation – Turbo!

By: Ashley

For those of you who don’t know, I have a little boy who will be turning 3 in June. He, along with TONS of other boys, loves to go fast. He runs, races, zips, zags, and speeds around our house inside and out. He hasn’t been to see a movie in a theater yet but, I’m thinking this summer, once he’s turned 3, he will be ready. After seeing a few sneak peeks at DreamWorks Animation summer film, Turbo, I think that might be the right movie to try! image

What is Turbo? Turbo is a little story about a sweet little garden snail. I know, I know. A movie about a snail, one of the slowest creatures ever, named Turbo. It doesn’t make sense. Once you find out that this little snail goes through a pretty spectacular transformation leaving him with special super speed power, then it starts to sound like a good story!

 

This is another star studded cast including Ryan Reynolds (Turbo) and Paul Giamatti (Chet) lead the way with other big names like Maya Rudolph, Ken Jeong, Luis Guzman, Samuel L. Jackson, and even Snoop Dogg adding more to this dynamic cast.

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Turbo is on track to hit theaters July 2013.

A big thank you to 20th Century Fox and DreamWorks Animation for inviting us to The Croods Parent Blogger Summit where I saw a sneak peek of Turbo.

About Ashley – Ashley is a mom, wife, sister, daughter, friend, and former teacher working to navigate through the mysterious world of Mommyia. Read more about her adventures at Momicles and follow her@Momicles2010.



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The Croods Character Animation Process: Bringing The Croods to Life #TheCroods

March 11, 2013 By 2 Comments

The Croods Character Animation – Bringing The Croods to Life

By: Ashley

Did you know every second of character animation takes about a day to complete? Holy moly! When I heard that at the Parent Blogger Summit for The Croods, my jaw literally dropped. Can you imagine dedicating yourself to something so intensely? That’s just what James Baxter, one of the animators at DreamWorks does, and hearing him talk about all The Croods character animation secrets was almost as amazing as the skill and technology behind the film!

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“The fun thing about The Croods… was making these cavemen different from any other kind of cavemen that you’ve seen before, but to also make them really funny and entertaining.” That’s one of the first things Baxter had to say about the character work on The Croods and I have to say they succeeded BIG TIME! The Croods family is a great hodge podge of animal like characteristics and mannerisms, raw human emotion, and tons of physical comedy.

Listening to animator James Baxter discuss his work on The Croods.

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When you check out The Croods, you will definitely notice some animal influences in their movements. From the silverback gorilla way that Grugg (the dad) walks, the cat like athleticism of Eep (daughter), or even the little feral Jack Russel way toddler Sandy scurries around – they are all so incredibly believable. If you think that the fun on The Croods stops with fun human characters, you better wait to see all of the creature creations that the team came up with. Have you ever seen a Macawnivore? How about a Piranhakeet? Maybe a Crocopup is more your style. These creatures play a huge part in the movie, so animators spent a lot of time perfecting their moves and mannerisms too! “(And) it was just bizarre trying to come up with believable ways that these ridiculous creatures would actually move so that you could believe it.”

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So what is it that makes the animated character look SO MUCH like the actor behind the voice? In The Croods, when I watch Eep (voiced by Emma Stone), part of what makes it so lifelike is the way her face moves: the certain smile or arch of the brow that looks just like Emma Stone. That’s where “lipstick cameras” come into play. Since there is a camera on the actors in the sound booth, animators can use that footage to fine tune a character’s mannerisms and expressions. Apparently Emma Stone is wildly animated when working in the sound booth and gave them a ton of ideas and things to work with.

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Where does a lot of animation take place? According to Baxter, “…largely sitting at our desks, animating away, manipulating the puppets.” Once a character is created, animators use special computer programs (when using computer animation) to create a rigging system. You can think of it as the most intense set of puppet strings you have ever seen. With tons of controls for each aspect of a characters movement, it’s no wonder that it takes one day to create 1 second of animation.

Don’t worry, the animators don’t spend all of their time at their desks. One of the things I loved to see was how involved they all were with studying movement. Sure they used a lipstick camera and watched the movements of animals, but the other best test subject, was themselves! How do you see what it looks like for a caveman to fall down? You set up a camera, act like a caveman, and throw yourself down on the ground!

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I was extremely impressed with the animation and incredibly lifelike characters in The Croods. Learning some of the behind the scenes secrets just made it even better. I can’t wait for you to see it too!

 

The Croods smashes into theaters March 22.

Link Up!

Visit the official website

Like The Croods on Facebook

Follow @DWAnimation on Twitter #TheCroods

Re-pin great DIY tutorials, printables & more from The Croods on Pinterest!

A big thank you to 20th Century Fox and DreamWorks Animation for inviting us to The Croods Parent Blogger Summit.

About Ashley – Ashley is a mom, wife, sister, daughter, friend, and former teacher working to navigate through the mysterious world of Mommyia. Read more about her adventures at Momicles and follow her@Momicles2010.



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Must See In 3D Oz The Great and Powerful Review #DisnyOzEvent

March 8, 2013 By 9 Comments

A movie must see, and you must see it in 3D Oz the Great and Powerful will be enchanting theaters all over the world today. I see movies in 3D all the time and most the time I think it’s a waste of money but not Oz the Great and Powerful. Oz the Great and Powerful starts off with the most amazing 3D effects and at some point I felt like I crossed over the rainbow and was there myself, instead of sitting in a theater with 3D glasses on. It was amazing.

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Oz the Great and Powerful is a strong combination of real sets and CGI. The film is directed by Sam Raimi and he made some amazing decisions on cast, such as James Franco as the wizard, Michelle Williams as Glinda, Mila Kunis as Theodora and Rachel Weisz as Evanora. The four of them make a powerful punch as the movie progresses and surprises are revealed. But let’s start at the beginning. Oscar Diggs (James Franco), a small-time circus magician with dubious ethics has to make a dash to get out of one of his situations and as he is escaping he is sucked into a tornado. We are taken on his journey from dusty Kansas to the vibrant Land of Oz and the 3D effects are brillian. Of course when he lands he finds out that he was expected and is now rich…..fame and fortune are his for the taking. That is until he meets three witches, Theodora (Mila Kunis), Evanora (Rachel Weisz) and Glinda (Michelle Williams), who are not convinced he is the great wizard everyone’s been expecting.

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The color of Oz is amazing, the worlds are amazing. I say worlds because each city in the land of Oz is so grand. In one city we meet China Girl and she’s played by Joey King. Along the yellow brick road before even meeting China Girl we meet Finley played by Zach Braff. Finley becomes Oscar’s good conscience and the comic relief as he’s quite a funny monkey.  Oscar suddenly finds himself reluctantly drawn into the epic problems facing the Land of Oz and its inhabitants, Oscar must find out who is good and who is evil before it is too late. Putting his magical arts to use through illusion, ingenuity—and even a bit of wizardry—Oscar transforms himself not only into the great wizard but into a better man as well.monkey

Going down the yellow brick road again in this prequel was a fantastic illusion that transported me into the land of Oz. The only time I was brought back into the theater was when The Flying monkeys came flying out of the screen and I jumped out of my seat. I enjoyed it so much that I would pay for the 3D ticket price and take my husband with me.

 

 

travel and expenses to see OZ were provided by Disney.



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I’m Off To Find The Wizard: My Hot Air Balloon Ride with James Franco #DisneyOzEvent

March 3, 2013 By 5 Comments

My Interview with James Franco started in a hot air balloon. I was so fortunate to have the time to step into the hot air balloon that would take me directly to Oz, where I would find the wizard himself; James Franco. Disney took video of me inside the balloon and their video was so fancy I didn’t have any software able to edit it with so here it is take one and take two of my hot air balloon ride to Oz.

I got to pull the fire. It was AMAZING. Then I was also Glinda using my want against the terrible tornado.

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Then once I was finally in Oz, I participated in a group interview of James Franco. First, I’m going to tell you that James Franco was much more than I expected. I realized that he’s very intelligent, not your typical celebrity, and possibly intimidated by a roomful of mommy bloggers. I’ve read that he’s one of the most schooled celebrities there are. He has quite a few degrees and keeps striving for more. One of my readers wanted to know if he ever sleeps and I can report that yes he does. He sleeps about six hours a night and works as hard as he does because it’s what he enjoys and wants out of life right now.

“my job is what I love and, um, so I don’t need a relief from it like someone who doesn’t like their job. I just kind of move from project to project because, it’s how I enjoy life. So it seems like I’m doing a lot of things but, it’s really just because I fill all of my time with these things rather than, half of my time.”

Now, let’s delve into what he thought about playing with wizard and the rest of the cast.

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Q. How was working with magic, can you still do it now?

I can. Well, I had to train. I trained with a Vegas magician, Lance Burton and he showed me a lot of the secret tricks and I got pretty good at it. There’s a scene in the beginning of the film where we see Oz, doing his act in the traveling circus. And there were more tricks in the original act that I learned so I could make doves materialize out of nothing and pull rabbits out of hats. But, it didn’t make the cut. It was fun to learn anyways.160550130BS00057_Walt_Disne

Q. How was it working with Finley and China Girl?

Zach Braff plays the flying monkey, Finley, and, Joey King plays the China Girl, the doll made out of porcelain. Those were some of my favorite scenes. I thought they were, just great characters and, great kind of oddball sidekicks to have in the land of Oz. And then I loved Joey and Zack. I would do anything with them. They’re great collaborators. The actual process of interacting with CG characters is it’s own kind of thing, but, filmmakers and, actors are getting more and more use to it. So it’s not as if I’m just acting to nothing the whole time. There’s a process you go through, and I had great training………In the early takes, Zach would be there with me so I could interact with him, and then for the China Girl, there was a great, puppeteer who could bring this puppet to life, Then I would hear Joey’s voice in my ear. And then the doll would react to what she was saying.

So you do that in the early takes and if the animators, or the computer animators want, they can always use my side of those takes. Then paint out Zack or paint out the puppet. But then at the end of that series of takes, the scene is sort of ingrained in me or, I know the flow of the, of the interaction. I will eventually have a take where I’m, acting to nothing and if you, [LAUGHS], were a guest that day and saw that, you’d think, I’m an insane person or something.

So that’s what it’s like working with a puppet, at least according to James Franco. Oh and I have to mention he couldn’t pick a favorite witch. He loved working with all of them equally! He’s a very smart man to answer the question in that way. You can find out just how smart the Wizard really is in theaters March 8th.



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Sofia The First: Once Upon a Princess DVD Release

February 22, 2013 By Leave a Comment

Disney Junior’s animated television movie “Sofia the First: Once Upon a Princess,” which was crowned the #1 preschool cable TV telecast of all time when it aired on November 18, 2012, arrives on DVD March 5, 2013. Zoe has watched it five times since we’ve opened it and every time we have friends over she has to show it to them too. It’s an adorable little movie about a regular little girl becoming a princess and it led to the TV series Sofia The First.

clip_image001Now for the first time on DVD, young viewers can join Sofia the First as she experiences first-hand what it really means to be part of the enchanting world of a princess. When Sofia’s mom marries the king, she’s whisked off to the castle, where she learns what it means to be a true princess. In addition to learning how to fit in with her new family including her step-father, King Roland II, and step-siblings, Amber and James, Sofia quickly discovers that looking like a princess isn’t all that difficult, but possessing the characteristics of a true princess – honesty, loyalty, courage, independence, compassion and grace – is what makes one truly royal. While living in a captivating world of castles, wizards and flying horses, Sofia is a relatable peer-to-peer princess who is experiencing many of the same social situations as young viewers at home – learning how to fit in, making new friends and conquering new skills. Helping her in her journey are the three headmistresses of Royal Prep Academy – Fauna, Flora and Merryweather (the beloved fairies seen in Disney’s classic "Sleeping Beauty"); the royal steward, Baileywick; and a group of cute woodland creatures including a rabbit named Clover; as well as Cinderella, a classic Disney Princess, who makes a special visit to offer Sofia words of wisdom.

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About The TV Series:

A "Sofia the First" television series will premiere January 11, 2013 on Disney Channel and Disney Junior and will will roll out internationally through mid-2013 on both Disney Channels and Disney Junior Channels. For more details on the show, please visit www.disney.go.com/disneyjunior/sofia-the-first.

It’s sure to make any little girl smile. The songs made me even giggle a little.

Sophia The First will be available March 5th on DVD.



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Safe Haven Movie Review #SafeHaven

February 12, 2013 By 4 Comments

Last night I had a fabulous date night with my husband at the screening of the movie Safe Haven. I usually look at what a movie is about before I go see it and this time I didn’t. I just knew Josh Duhamel was in it and that was clincher enough for me. A friend of mine said she was interested in seeing it because of the best selling author Nicholas Sparks. The movie started with quite an intense opening, I was so surprised, I actually expected to be watching a light hearted Valentine’s Day chick flick. WOW, it was so much more with a great plot, ups and downs and yes a little love story. My husband even said, “it wasn’t presented in the usual love story box, it had action and suspense”. So if a guy tries to tell you he doesn’t want to see a chick flick on Valentine’s Day tell him Safe Haven is not a chick flick.

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In SAFE HAVEN, a young woman with a mysterious past lands in Southport, North Carolina where her bond with a widower forces her to confront the dark secret that haunts her. The young woman called herself Katie (Julianne Hough) is running from her past and finds a very very quiet spot to stop. She tries to keep her head down but a young man with two adorable children is interested in her. Katie makes a great friend Jo (Cobie Smulders) who helps her to trust Alex (Josh Duhamel). It’s a movie that amazing and unexpectedly touched all my emotions. I was nervous in the beginning, hopeful for a bright future, excited with a young love blooming, and jumped out of my seat with fright. I was even brought to tears with an endearing family moment. Children in movies bring about emotion in my like nothing else, they always have but as a mother now it’s even worse. I loved the magic of this movie. I don’t want to give too much of the movie away but there is so much to love about the relationship between Jo, Alex and Katie!

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I have to say that the acting was amazing because I really felt for all the characters, well except for the bad cop. He made me very very angry. I only noticed three bad words in the movie and they all happened all in a row by the same character. Safe Haven was an unexpected adventure wrapped up in this movie. My favorite part was SPOILER: When Alex told Katie he loved her and it didn’t matter who she was or what her past was, he loved her and wanted her to stay. My second favorite part was when he fell through the floorboard of her house. It’s moments like those, the embarrassing ones that are so true to life and actually very romantic. My husband’s favorite part of the movie was when the little girl jumped from the burning house and her father caught her. My husband said it’s a moment he hopes he would live up to as a father. He said he liked it and agreed that it’s more than a chick flick. So take your Valentine to see the amazing movie Safe Haven in theaters February 14th. This picture is from my favorite scene!

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‘Like’ Safe Haven on Facebook

Follow @SafeHaven on Twitter #SafeHaven

Watch the trailer and clips on YouTube

 

More About Safe Haven

An affirming and suspenseful story about a young woman’s struggle to love again, Safe Haven is based on the novel from Nicholas Sparks, the best-selling author behind the hit films The Notebook and Dear John. When a mysterious young woman arrives in a small North Carolina town, her reluctance to join the tight knit community raises questions about her past. Slowly, she begins putting down roots, and gains the courage to start a relationship with Alex, a widowed store owner with two young children. But dark secrets intrude on her new life with such terror that she is forced to rediscover the meaning of sacrifice and rely on the power of love in this deeply moving romantic thriller.

Starring Josh Duhamel, Julianne Hough, David Lyons, Cobie Smulders

We were provided with press passes to an early screening.



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Escape From Planet Earth Movie Review

February 12, 2013 By Leave a Comment

I have to say, well done Weinstein Co on making a fantastic family friendly movie. Escape From Planet Earth has my approval for all ages having nothing inappropriate in the movie. I took 14 friends with me to the movie, parents and children and everyone like the movie. We had children from age 2 to 17 and everyone enjoyed it. My daughter was sitting next to me and she laughed a LOT. She wasn’t scared at all, she just found things funny and exciting. My son was on the other end of the row with his friends and he had a fantastic time too. He watched it without needing to come get a hug from mommy which means the scenes weren’t intense at all. The volume level was great too. I have extra sensitive children and they loved it. They even kept on their 3D glasses. Miles said he loved when everyone was dancing at the end of the movie. Here is his video review of Escape From Planet Earth that comes out February 15th:

 

 

Do you know what the movie is about?

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It’s about a family learning how to be a family again. The 3D animated family comedy catapults moviegoers to planet Baab where admired astronaut Scorch Supernova (Brendan Fraser) is a national hero to the blue alien population.  A master of daring rescues, Scorch pulls off astonishing feats with the quiet aid of his nerdy, by-the-rules brother, Gary (Rob Corddry), head of mission control at BASA and father. The father (Gary, played by Rob Corddry) is an uptight nerd that has a hard time letting go of all the details. I feel like when I’m in the kitchen with my children I’m just like him. I have a very hard time letting my kids just be kids. Gary and Scorch have a fight over being a team, they both think they don’t need the other so Gary quits his job at mission control when trouble happens.  When BASA’s no-nonsense chief Lena (Jessica Alba) informs the brothers of an SOS from a notoriously dangerous planet, Scorch rejects Gary’s warnings and bounds off for yet another exciting mission.  But when Scorch finds himself caught in a fiendish trap set by the evil Shanker (William Shatner) it’s up to scrawny, risk-averse Gary to do the real rescuing.  As the interplanetary stakes rise to new heights, Gary is left to save his brother, his planet, his beloved wife Kira (Sarah Jessica Parker) and their adventure-hungry son Kip (Jonathan Morgan Heit).

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I was wondering how the movie would end and happy to find out that everything works out in the end. I find it hard to find a movie that I’m really comfortable letting my children go to. There is usually in appropriate humor in children’s movies now, but Escape From Planet Earth was very clean, cute, and charming. My whole family enjoyed it from beginning to end.

 

We were granted press passes to an early screening of the movie!



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Monsters INC Ultimate Collector’s Edition Blu-ray 3D

February 9, 2013 By 1 Comment

On February 19th, one of Disney/Pixar’s most beloved and visually imaginative feature films MONSTERS, INC arrives for the first time on Blu-ray 3D in the “Ultimate Collector’s Edition” 5-Disc Combo Pack! Laugh out loud bonus features include Toy Story Toons: "Partysaurus Rex" short, a "Monsters University" Sneak Peek and much more and it’s arrived at our house just today. We ripped it open and in our player it went. We’re going to loan it to our neighbors too so they can watch it on their 3D TV. We haven’t had the opportunity to upgrade our TV yet.

Available To Own For The First Time On 5-Disc Blu-ray™ 3D Combo Pack

clip_image002Synopsis:

The now-classic Academy Award®-winning animated comedy adventure “Monsters, Inc.” is set in Monstropolis, a thriving company town where monsters of all shapes and sizes reside. Lovable Sulley (voiced by John Goodman) and his wisecracking best friend Mike Wazowski (voiced by Billy Crystal) are the top scare team at Monsters, Inc., the largest scream-processing factory. The main power source in the monster world is the collected screams of human children—and at Monsters, Inc., an elite team of scarers is responsible for gathering those precious natural resources.

Believed by monsters to be toxic, children are strictly forbidden from entering Monstropolis. But when a little girl named Boo (voiced by Mary Gibbs) accidentally follows Sulley back into his world, he finds his career in jeopardy and his life in utter chaos. Assisted by Mike, the two pals plot to rectify the mistake and return Boo to her home. When the trio encounters an unexpected series of complications, they become embroiled in a cover-up catapulting them into a mystery beyond their wildest dreams.

Directed by Oscar®-winner Pete Docter (“Up”) and produced by Oscar nominee Darla K. Anderson (“Toy Story 3”), “Monsters, Inc.” features a screenplay by Andrew Stanton and Daniel Gerson and music by Randy Newman.

LIKE IT:

Why yes we do!

I’ve always thought it’s perfect for all ages and my kids have been watching it what seems like forever so we’re excited to see it on the big screen and you can to because it’s in theaters NOW. I’m so excited about it that I came up with 10 reasons you have to go see Monsters INC again in the theater. And now of course you have to see it in your own home.

 

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I LOVE SULLY!

 

We received a sample!



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